Nikolai Fyodorovich Vatutin was a Soviet military commander during World War II who was responsible for many Red Army operations in the Ukrainian SSR as the commander of the Southwestern Front, and of the Voronezh Front during the Battle of Kursk. During the Soviet offensive to retake right-bank Ukraine, Vatutin led the 1st Ukrainian Front, which was responsible for the Red Army's offensives to the west and the southwest of Kiev and the eventual liberation of the city.
Vatutin c. 1940s
Vatutin (2nd from right) with other officers of the Northwestern Front, February 1942
Vatutin in 1943
The 1st Ukrainian Front, previously the Voronezh Front, was a major formation of the Red Army during World War II, being equivalent to a Western army group.
Alexander Pokryshkin (center) carrying the standard of the 1st Ukrainian Front at the 1945 Moscow Victory Parade.
1st Ukrainian Front Standard for Victory Parade - at the Central Armed Forces Museum in Moscow